all is not well in the estuary. And as an educational platform, it is a 

 forum for identifying estuary problems and public concerns. The 

 kickoff meeting is also an opportunity to involve all interested 

 people and groups concerned about and affected by the estuary 

 program. Furthermore, it is a chance to include influential officials 

 in the earliest deliberations. 



As an outgrowth of the kickoff meeting, a committee structure is set 

 up and assigned responsibilities by the Management Conference. 

 Each estuary program designs a committee structure to meet its 

 particular needs. The Conference must strive to understand the 

 community of the estuary: how decisions are reached, what per- 

 ceptions are prevalent, and who or what institutions are influential. 

 The size of the community also makes a difference. For instance, 

 a comparatively small area like Buzzards Bay, located within a 

 single state, requires a simpler committee structure than the much 

 larger interstate estuary. Long Island Sound. Generally, the struc- 

 ture consists of a policy-making committee, a management com- 

 mittee, work groups or subcommittees, and other standing 

 committees including a scientific and technical advisory committee 

 (STAC), a citizens advisory committee (CAC), and often a local 

 government committee (LGC) and a financial planning committee 

 (FPC). 



The organizational structures of several generic programs are 

 depicted in Figures 2.1 through 2.4. 



Management Conference 



EPA Administrator 

 State Governor 



Policy 

 Committee 



Appointed by EPA 



Administrator and State 



Governor 



Management 

 Committee 



Environmental managers 



from participating 



agencies— federal, 



state, local; other 



representatives 



Citizens Advisory 

 Committee (CAC) 



Scientific and Technical 



Advisory Committee 



(STAC) 



Represented by policy and management committees, by CAC 

 and STAC, but also participating as part of the Management 

 Conference: 



Elected officials 

 Civic organizations 

 Educators 

 Businesses 

 Boaters 



Environmental groups 



Scientists 



Industries 



Recreational fishing groups 



General public 



Figure 2. 1 



13 



